These two forms of surgery have for the longest time been confused:  cosmetic and reconstructive surgery. While to some they are self-explanatory and they couldn’t be more different, others just can’t seem to tell them apart. Matter of fact, a few procedures have been classified as cosmetic while it is clear that they fall under the former category, unfortunately leaving them out of the scope of the ordinary medical cover.

What is Cosmetic Surgery?

As a Cosmetic Consultant in Canada will tell you, cosmetic surgery is concerned with enhancing a patient’s appearance. It concerns itself with improving esthetics and symmetry, and so no cosmetic surgery is meant to alter how a part of your body works. It only makes it more appealing. Cosmetic surgery is not usually necessary – in that it is not a matter of life and death but it does improve one’s self esteem. Procedures include breast augmentation, facial contouring, body contouring, and facial rejuvenation.

Surgeries that are not necessarily vital for a patient to stay in good health are called elective, and they are not usually an emergency. They can be scheduled to be performed at the patient’s convenience unlike non-elective surgeries that are usually an emergency. [Read more…]

By Jeffrey Whitman, M.D., Key-Whitman Eye Center

While our vision brings us joys year-round, summer in Texas is a special time to take in the sights. Whether it’s gazing up at the stars in Big Bend National Park or marveling at the architecture in Galveston’s Strand Historic District, your eyes allow you to take in life’s many pleasure.

But in Texas, eye disease is a particular problem. According to the Texas Department of Health Services, 18% of Texans have an eye disease. Due to the increase in America’s aging population, the impact of diabetes, hypertension, and tobacco use, eye disease and vision loss are on the rise in the Lone Star State.

Common vision loss ailments include macular degeneration. Symptoms for this disease may include a dark area in the center of your vision and the gradual loss of the ability to see objects clearly. Another leading cause of vision loss is glaucoma, which causes progressive degeneration of the optic nerve and again, leads to loss of vision.

Cataracts remain the most common cause of blindness, especially for older individuals, although this condition can be easily corrected. Finally, there are complications from diabetes known as diabetic retinopathy which doesn’t necessarily produce symptoms and can result in damage to the blood vessels in the retina. The best defense is early, and regular, vision screenings, particularly if you suffer from diabetes. [Read more…]

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf recently vetoed a bill which sought to limit the type and amount of prescription drugs workers could access. Senate Bill 936 essentially gave employers greater discretion in terms of medications. Its aim was supposed to curtail prescription medication abuse, yet as noted by Wolf, “ Make no mistake, Senate Bill 936 is not a bill designed to fight the opioid crisis. It is wrong to sacrifice health care for our first responders to protect the bottom-line for insurance companies and corporations.”

What did Senate Bill 936 require?

Senate Bill 936 called for a drastic law to compensation law in Pennsylvania. It sought to establish a pre-approved list of prescription medications for every injured employee. In other words, if a doctor prescribed a specific drug that was not present in the list, insurance companies could effectively overrule what doctors deem fit. According to The Morning Call, “This legislation is a less-than-candid effort by health insurers and large employers to cut costs at the expense of injured workers.” [Read more…]

By Alex Bäcker, Ph.D.

In the age of ubiquitous smartphones, AI-powered chatbots and 24/7 connectivity, effective customer interaction in the healthcare vertical is taking on a different form. Welcome to the age of Digital Customer Interaction Management.

Virtual waitlists, flexible appointments, interactive communication, customized marketing, real-time user tracking and reporting – these are all required components for an effective interaction with healthcare patients in 2018.

The main reason is that every single touch point between an organization and its patients needs to be considered as an opportunity to delight, not only for retention, but also to encourage advocacy for the brand. If a patient has an unpleasant experience at a certain hospital or urgent care facility, they always have the option to go to different provider the next time they need medical attention. [Read more…]

Key for Costliest Health Plan Members and Employee Claimants

By Pam Greenhouse

The total cost of chronic disease in American between 2016-2030 is projected to be $42 trillion, according to the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, with $8,600 per person in medical and productivity cost if current trends continue.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality reports that over half of Americans are living with at least one chronic condition and nearly a third have multiple chronic conditions including congestive heart failure, diabetes, arthritis, and depression. Individuals with multiple chronic conditions are also the costliest patients, and costs increase with the number of chronic conditions: In 2010, nearly 40% of all inpatient hospital stays were for those with 5+ chronic conditions.

While these costs have skyrocketed for decades unabated, we have reached a tipping point where the evolution of mobile technology combined with video health coaching can address both the cost and quality challenges this population presents.

In the late 1990s-early 2000s, disease management programs (DMPs) began to proliferate, driven by managed care and capitation, with the aim of lowering the cost of care for chronic disease. But the challenges of patient enrollment and compliance have been significant and DMPs haven’t reached their potential. In fact, a not-insignificant number of companies have given up on DMPs for these reasons.


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By Robert E. Grant

At this year’s HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) conference, which explores, shares and promotes the best use of information technology and management systems in the U.S. healthcare industry, more than 40,000 health IT professionals, clinicians, executives and vendors from around the world gathered in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Among key industry trends taking center stage, attendees, exhibitors and presenters focused on finding ways to succeed in emerging value-based care models and patient engagement. And it’s about time. With the current model based on fees for services and prioritizing insurance providers and pharmaceutical companies first, patients continue to find themselves at the bottom of a soaring $3.4 trillion industry.

With the U.S. spending more on healthcare than any other country in the world at $10,348 per person—which amounts to nearly 18 percent of gross domestic product—it is indisputable that patients continue to pay more while receiving less. In addition to an increasing number of post-mortem reports highlighting this troubling predicament, Mirror, Mirror 2017: International Comparison Reflects Flaws and Opportunities for Better U.S. Health Care released by the Commonwealth Fund puts into harsh perspective just how far America’s healthcare system has plummeted.

Rather than leading the world, the U.S. has fallen to last place on a list of the top 11 countries with similar high-income populations, scoring poorly in nearly every category, including administrative efficiency and healthcare outcomes, and reinforcing the notion that high spend is no guarantee for high quality. [Read more…]

Travel companions play an important role as advocates and caregivers

By Laura Carabello

Among those who travel across the country or around the world to seek affordable, quality healthcare, 83 percent travel with a companion. Whether undergoing treatments or recovery, the physical and moral support that these caregiver/companions bring to medical travel patients is critical.

In fact, research consistently shows that companion participation in care is associated with positive patient and physician experiences. Informal healthcare providers include friends, family, and some volunteers who provide essential unpaid care without formal training. 

At home, caregivers administer medications, manage wounds and assist with rehabilitation. In hospital settings, they perform tasks that augment care provided by nurses and physicians, such as monitoring symptoms and articulating patients’ preferences to healthcare professionals.

The support of a companion/caregiver is important in any healthcare setting, but it is especially critical in the context of medical travel where patients may face additional challenges, such as travel, an unfamiliar physical environment, a different culture and potential language barriers.

They also help to retain and transfer the patient’s medical information at a medical facility, advocate on behalf of the patient to ensure all their needs are being met, and provide a safe and positive medical travel experience.


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By Kim Bassett

Hospital executives, physicians and healthcare workers — myself included — see the hospital world from a very different view than that of the patient. The healthcare world feels normal to us.  We spend so much time in our healthcare world that it becomes our second home and family. 

For our patients and their visitors, the healthcare environment can be very confusing, challenging and even fear-provoking.  As healthcare workers, we often don’t think about the uncertainty our patients feel as they navigate the healthcare system. 

Recently, I had an opportunity to accompany a family member through her healthcare experience while undergoing elective surgery.  I spent 3 days in an unfamiliar hospital with her and spent the time watching the staff interact with her and her response to them.  She thought this hospital and its staff was the best place on earth.  She totally trusted that they were all focused on her. 

Here are five things they did that made her feel safe, secure, and cared for.    [Read more…]

By Joe Reynolds

Healthcare providers are able to treat complex and chronic diseases better than ever before thanks to continued innovations in treatment options—but unfortunately for some patients who are uncomfortable with needles, some advanced treatments are required to be injected at home. This poses an additional challenge for healthcare providers to not only help quell patient reluctance and anxiety with the prospect of injections but also to ensure continued patient compliance once patients are on their own.

Needle anxiety can be a roadblock

Research studies have illustrated what many clinicians may have long suspected: The more self-confidence a patient feels regarding self-injection, the more likely they are to adhere to their schedule for self-injection and perform it properly. As such, it’s vital to work with patients at the start of their “onboarding” period—i.e. the first 30 to 90 days of self-injection—to demonstrate proper self-injection technique. But certain shortcomings need to be addressed. Current face-to-face training sessions are usually relatively brief, with patients expected to absorb a great deal of information quickly. Also, once patients are home alone, they may not recall the proper injection method, risking their safety and potentially failing to deliver the proper dose. And if they are naturally fearful of needles, they may decide to skip their treatment altogether.

In this regard, self-injection trainers, such as those developed by Noble International, Inc., have shown to be useful. These trainers can be designed to simulate the appearance, sound and feel of actual prefilled syringes and autoinjectors in minute detail, giving patients the experience of self-injecting without actual dosing. The result has been the development of a line of patient-centric training devices that “inject” an extensive level of realism into the onboarding process. [Read more…]